A Little Preschool Mishap
by Snapegirlkmf
Summary: Killian Gold's first day of preschool . . .with a new teacher, new friends, enemies and of course and all new adventure with plenty of mishaps. Rumbelle & Swanfire pairings. Mishap verse, AU! Sequel to "A Magical Kingdom Mishap".


~ A Little Preschool Mishap ~

By Snapegirlkmf &amp; CJ Moliere

**Author Notes: We aim to please our Mishap series readers and this time we were prompted for what mishaps little Killian would get into once he started preschool. Here you go, dearies! **

Emma and Baelfire Gold were learning the same lesson their parents had: their children grew up so fast and they were left to wonder where all the time went. Henry was now a teenager and they'd missed out on his early years. Thankfully Regina had enough videos and pictures to help fill in the gaps. Now their little pirate was going to be starting school, an event they both looked forward to….and dreaded. Though he had been changed back into a child again, Killian Gold still retained some of the knowledge from his former life and picked up even more in his second childhood, knowledge that always seemed to get the boy in a heap of trouble with the adults. Still, they loved their adopted son as much as their biological children and didn't want him growing up too soon.

Killian had to be given the standard vaccinations prior to starting preschool, leading to another little mishap when the child became terrified that he would be infected with alien DNA like the victims in the old TV show The X-Files. Thankfully Rumple and Belle as children, with his parents and Doctor McStuffins's help had been able to coax him to have the vaccinations done.

Killian was excited for his first day of preschool. He woke up extra early so he could pick out his clothes, comb his hair and make sure he ate breakfast and Emma packed his lunch. They would get snack at school, but Killian insisted he have his lunches made at home. "I'm not gonna eat no crappy school food."

"Not all of it is crap, Killian," his mother pointed out though some of the lunches she had in school could only be classified as mystery meat.

The little boy cocked his head. "Nobody makes 'sketti n' meatballs like you n' Grandpa do."

She would never tell her son, but she HAD gotten into trouble a few times for starting food fights with the mystery meat. It was a secret she planned to take to the grave...if she could.

Bae started laughing. "He's right, Emma. Nobody does . . .they open up a can of Chef Boyardee."

She ruffled his hair. "I try, Killian. I try," she said modestly.

Henry yawned over his Cap'n Crunch. "I don't mind Spaghettios but I don't like the sausage raviolis."

"I cannot believe that sister of yours made me eat it," She glanced over at Aria. The infant was smirking.

"Hey, babydoll, you want some oatmeal and 'nanas?" Bae cooed at his daughter. That was one food they could always count on her eating . . .with a small pinch of cinnamon.

Aria gurgled and clapped her hands. "Mmm . . .mmm . . .Mama . . .Dada . . ."

"Henry, do you have your permission slip for your field trip today?" Emma reminded her eldest. Henry sometimes was scatterbrained.

"Uh huh." He patted his backpack. They were going on a trip to Boston to see the historical section of the city.

"You gonna visit any haunted houses?" Killian wanted to know.

Henry laughed. "Maybe . . .if any of the historic places have ghosts."

"Cool! Get a video on your phone!"

"I will, buddy," Henry promised. "Gotta jet, for I miss the bus!" He grabbed his backpack and raced out the door, making the dog bark.

"Better take some meatballs in case there's zombies!" Killian yelled after him.

He picked up his lunch bag. "They better have a mike for me to heat these up cause I'm not eatin em cold."

"Of course they do." Bae assured him.

Emma took several pictures of Killian with her phone, her eyes glinting with tears. She had never thought she'd get so emotional over these things but it was her little boy's first day of school. And something she'd missed with Henry.

"Mom, I feel like m'posin for GQ or somethin."

"Hush. It's your first day of school, and it's a milestone," his mother sniffled. She wiped her eyes on the dishcloth and then forwarded the pictures to the family and her partner, Nick Carlyle.

Bae began feeding Aria her breakfast, saying, "All around the mulberry bush the monkey chased the weasel . . ." and when he got to the part with "Pop goes the weasel!" he popped the spoon in her mouth. It was something Rumple had done with him, or so his papa had told him one day when he was watching his granddaughter.

"Better hope she doesn't throw it on ya, Dad!" Killian giggled.

"Nah. She eats this, right, honey bunny?" Bae said, and tweaked her nose.

Emma checked all the forms that she had to bring in for Killian's teacher before saying, "Okay buddy, eat your breakfast. It's almost time to leave."

"Ummm...okay..."

He ate his mini pancakes and sausage, wondering if he would know anyone in his new class.

He was hoping Doc McStuffin's's daughter Beth would be in his class, remembering her saying that Beth was his age.

Emma would drop him off at school, giving Bae some time with Aria before returning home so he could go to work and she would be with the baby till it was time to pick up her son at 3 o'clock. School started at 9 for the preschoolers.

"M'ready!" Killian announced, picking up his backpack and his lunch bag.

"Okay, say goodbye to Dad and Aria while I start the car." Emma said, going out to start the Bug.

Killian threw his arms around his father and hugged him. "See ya later alligator!"

"In awhile crocodile!" Bae laughed, and ruffled his hair. "Have a good day at school and I wanna hear all about it later."

"Okay. See ya Missus Tater Head!" he teased his sister and rubbed her head.

Aria giggled and blew kisses at him. "Tiss! Tiss Tater!"

"That's you all right!"

She squealed and waved at him.

Bae helped his son into his jacket. It was a soft navy blue one Rumple had made for him with the Nevenger logo on it.

Killian was proud to be the leader of the new Nevengers. They'd already solved their first case, the kidnapping of Geppetto's parents. He was looking forward to them having more adventures.

"Okay, you're set, buddy," Bae told his son.

Killian raced out the door in time to see his grandfather pull up his Caddy.

Hello, dearie!" Rumple greeted his grandson as he got out of the car. "Are you all ready for your first day of school?"

"Uh-huh...holy crap Gramma,..you're gettin big!" Killian exclaimed, pointing to Belle's belly.

"In another four months you're gonna meet your new uncle or aunt," Rumple chuckled. The couple had opted to be surprised as to the sex of the baby, even though the sonogram could have revealed what it was, or Rumple could have done so with magic.

Belle discovered she was expecting two weeks after Archie and Regina's weddings, much to the couple's delight. She didn't care whether they had a boy or a girl. She just wanted Rumple's baby.

Rumple didn't mind either, he just wanted mother and baby to be healthy and to be a papa again.

Belle laughed. "Well you'll have yourself a new Nevengers recruit too."

He beamed. "I'm always lookin for a few good guys n gals."

"You have fun at school, lad. We'll see you when you come home," Rumple said and ruffled his grandson's hair. "C'mon, Belle, let's go and say hello to Bae and Aria." He waved at Emma.

"See ya later gators!"

He got in the car and turned on the radio, Van Halen's Jump blasting through the speakers.

"C'mon Mom, we're gonna be late!"

Emma hoped she'd still be able to hear by the time they got there. She backed carefully out of the driveway.

"Love this song!" Killian shouted.

Killian was in Jasmine's class. The former princess of Agrahbah enjoyed teaching preschoolers more than having to rule a country as she would have had they stayed back in their world.

He was one of fifteen pre-K students, those kids who were ages 4-5 and getting prepared for kindergarten next year.

They also had a Teacher's Aide, Ashley Boyd, who used to be Cinderella back in their old world. Since she had a baby she thought a part time position like this ideal.

The only trouble was she would have a group of children to look after and would have to be alert every second some older children were more curious than babies.

Most of the children were excited to meet Killian, having heard the adults talk about the adventures he had while others were ready to treat him worse than the rest of the 'underlings'.

They usually waited until the teachers were busy before they started causing trouble.

"Good morning, class. I'm Miss Jasmine, and we're going to have some fun this morning," Jasmine greeted the class. She was wearing a shimmery turquoise top and black skorts with comfortable black shoes since that was a must in her profession. She beamed happily at her new students. "Now, I'm going to call your names, and I want you to raise your hand and say "here" when I do, okay?"

"Good morning, Miss Jasmine!" they chorused.

"And this is Miss Ashley, my teacher's aide," Jasmine introduced Ashley, who was wearing a pretty powder blue skirt and frilly white top.

"Hi!" Ashley waved at them.

Jasmine consulted her list. "Okay, ready?" She began to call out names. "Belinda Brown . . .Mary Contrary . . .Timmy Fisher . . .Killian Gold . . ."

"Here!" Killian cried, waving his hand in the air.

"Very good!" Jasmine praised. "Jack Horner . . ."

Several boys in the back of the room laughed.

"H...H...ere…" he stuttered.

"Yeah keep an eye on your pie...he'll eat it all!"

She continued. "Leah Hunter . . .Molly Malone . . .Beth McStuffins . . .Peter Redbird . . .Christopher Robin . . .Anne Shirley . . .Alice Tremaine . . .Tommy Tucker . . .William Winkie . . .and Yasmina Zahir."

More laughter was heard at the mention of William's name.

Killian sighed and glanced toward the back of the room to see who was laughing.

He wasn't going to let bullies ruin his first day.

He was seated at the same table as Beth, Jack, Wiiliam and Yasmina.

The laughter was coming from the table where Mary, Belinda, Tommy, and Alice sat. Alice, Killian knew, was the daughter of Drusilla Tremaine, one of the stepsisters of Cinderella.

Ashley frowned at the dark haired girl with her hair in ringlets. "Alice, be nice!"

Alice sniffed haughtily and ignored her.

Anne frowned. "You shouldn't laugh at someone's name. It's not polite."

"Who cares?" sneered Belinda. "And YOUR name's as boring as watching grass grow!"

Anne, a small girl with freckles and red hair in braids, snapped, "My name's not boring. A famous queen was named Anne! And I spell my name with an "E"!"

"You mean the one who lost her head?" taunted Tommy.

Mary sniggered. "That's something to be proud of!" She pointed at the other girl. "Don't lose your head!"

"And she was a ho...my mommy said so!" Mary added.

Anne looked away, her green eyes teary. She pretended not to hear them.

"I heard she was a witch!" Belinda reported. "And she witched the king so he married her."

"You wanna see a witch, look in the mirror Broomhilda!" yelled Beth

"Children, that's enough. We'll have no name calling in this classroom!" Jasmine reprimanded. "Your name is unique as you are, and you all should be proud of it. In fact, I think we're going to do a little lesson on names for homework. I want all of you to go home and have your mom and dad help you look up what your name means and ask them why they chose that name for you."

"Ummm...how'm I gonna do that?" asked Killian.

She gestured to herself. "My name-Jasmine-is a beautiful flower that grows in a desert garden. My papa chose it because he wanted me to grow up to be as lovely and sweet as the flower was."

"Yeah but I dunno why I have my name cause I'm adopted."

She went to the chalkboard and wrote her name on it. Then she wrote out the alphabet. "Now, who can tell me what this is?"

Several hands went up, including Killian's. "Yes, Killian?"

"It's the alphabet," he replied proudly. "The ABC's. I know them cause Rumple-err my grandpa-he taught me them and how to spell with them."

He thought back to last year when they were all toddlers and Rumple had taught him how to read and write. Those had been good times.

"Very good! And when you know your ABC's, you can spell and read," Jasmine said. "Let's all practice saying them together."

As they recited the letters, Killian stifled a yawn. This was so boring! He saw that Anne looked bored too.

He assumed they would at least play some games, not sit in a chair for hours and go over things his grandparents taught him months ago. If this was how the big schools were run, he wasn't going to like being there either.

"Hey, you wanna do something else?" he whispered to Anne.

"Like what?" she whispered behind her hand. "This is boring! I know all this stuff already! I can read the level 3 I-Can-Read books all by myself! My Aunt Myrna says soon I'll start Magic Treehouse books with real chapters."

"I dunno...but something...maybe we can find a way outta here an go to my clubhouse."

"You got a clubhouse! Cool! Where is it?"

"In my backyard. See i run this lil group called the Nevengers an we go on ventures and I'm always lookin for members."

"Really? Can-can I be a member?" she asked hopefully. "I'm smart and can solve lots of puzzles n' stuff."

"Sure! We got another girl named Annie so we need to give you a nickname so's everybody doesn't get confused."

"Umm . . .how about Professor? My Aunt Myrna says I oughta be one when I grow up."

Killian smiled and shook her hand. "Professor it is. You think maybe the others'll wanna join?"

She shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe you oughts ask 'em?" She scowled across the table. "Only don't ask them mean snots to join that were makin' fun of my name n' Jack's. They don't deserve to be in any club . . unless it;s the Mean Girls club!"

"Heck no...they oughta be in the jerk club with the blue butthole!"

"The Blue Butthole? Who's that?"

"The Blue Fairy only she got turned back into a kid cause she treated us like crap when we were turned into kids...slammed Gramma's nose in a book and spanked Grandpa real hard."

Anne's mouth dropped open. "Your Gramma's Belle Gold, right? Then that means your Grandpa's . . .Rumplestiltskin! He used to be the Dark One! And she hurt him? What an idiot!"

"Yeah. Then she sent us back to the forest an we almost got eaten by ogres and locked up by Granpa's dick dad Peter Pan."

"Oh my goodness! That's awful! And she's not locked up?"

"Nope. Maleficent's raisin her but she's gonna drive her nuts with her crap."

"Does she still have magic?" Anne whispered fearfully.

"Nope but you gotta watch her cause she steals it from the convent. She kidnapped Geppetto's parents 'fore Grandpa could turn em back into people so she could get back at him an Archie. But we found em...me an the Nevengers," Killian declared proudly.

"Wow! You sound really brave! And smart too." she praised.

"Ahh I'm not as smart as the others but I can kick butt when I need to. Had to kick Lost Boy butt and Pan butt."

"You gotta tell me bout that when we got recess. Cause right now Miss Jasmine's checkin' our work," Anne warned him, as the teacher was inspecting their papers.

"Okay."

Killian was anxious, hoping the teacher wouldn't think his work was sloppy or think him stupid.

Jasmine paused beside him and then said, "Why, Killian, this is very good! You've written all the letters correctly. Did you know your alphabet before coming to school?

"Uh-huh. Gramma an Grandpa taught me."

"Can you write your name and address? How about your phone number?"

"Grandpa said I had to know in case I got lost or something."

"That's very true. Why don't you write them here on the paper and then I'll give you some harder words to practice, okay?"

"Okay..."

He took special care writing the series of letters and numbers, as he practiced doing with Rumple and Belle nearly every day for months. Rumple had a few examples of his penmanship hanging up in the shop.

He handed the paper back to her. "I'm ready now."

Writing new words seemed to cure his boredom for the moment but he was counting the minutes until they could have recess and he would be able to tell Anne about his adventures and recruit the others for the group.

He noticed that Anne and Beth seemed to also know more than most of the others as far as writing went.

_Is recess ever gonna get here?_ he thought impatiently as he kept looking at the wall clock he'd also been taught how to read. Rumple insisted on keeping old fashioned clocks in the house and shop while at home he had all digital ones.

"Before this we used to tell time with sundials, remember?" he'd said.

"Uh-huh...and I hadta to use it to help me figure out where I was goin while I was sailin."

Rumple had nodded, for in a world where clocks had not existed in some kingdoms learning to tell the time by the sun was a must.

He felt terrible for Henry, Henry told him that he no longer had recess in school. he just had to go from room to room all day.

Finally Jasmine said it was time to put their writing aside and gather in the reading circle on the carpet for storytime.

"Hope they tell a good one," Willie said to the others.

Killian had to agree. He loved storytime with his grandparents and was hoping that Jasmine's would be just as interesting otherwise he was going to find a way to get out of the school and try to find a far more interesting way to spend the day with his new friends while the others were at their schools.

Killian would have preferred to have one of his toy crocodiles to hold onto during storytime as he did at home but now he was glad he didn't bring them because he didn't trust some of the kids in his class not to try to damage them like Blue once did.

The former fairy's deviousness had no boundaries when it came to the Nevengers. His only comfort was that she was in the other school and not his.

_Better be a good one or I'm gonna fall asleep_, he thought.

He was also getting hungry and couldn't wait to enjoy his spaghetti and meatball lunch. Emma even packed him two slices of garlic bread she'd baked herself.

All of the children had their own ideas of what stories they wanted to hear and started calling them out until Jasmine raised her hand for silence.

"Okay boys and girls, I want you to put your listening ears on and be quiet like mice." She put a finger to her lips. "Now, today we're gonna hear the story of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves." That was a well beloved story from her homeland of Agrabah, and not one she suspected many students had ever heard before.

Killian clapped excitedly.

It sounded like one his grandfather would tell and had a unique voice for each character.

Jasmine began, in the same voice her old storyteller in the palace harem used to use. "Once upon a time, in a desert kingdom far away, there lived a boy named Ali Baba . . ." She tried to infuse the story with as much of the magic and mystery that old Sheherazade did when she had told it.

The children all got quiet and listened.

They could all picture the scenes in their minds as wove her tale as masterfully as Rumple wove his garments.

After half an hour, Jasmine had to stop the tale because it was now time for snack, and right in the middle of a very interesting part too!

"Aww!" all the children groaned.

"We can hear the rest tomorrow," she promised. "As long as you behave."

"We will!"

"Good, now take your seats, because now we'll have our morning snack," she ordered. "It was now 10:30 AM.

She went to the small fridge and got out containers of two percent milk and some cut up apples with peanut butter. She also had carrot sticks and raisins for those kids who didn't like apples or couldn't have nuts. The school preferred healthy snacks for their kids to eat.

If a child was lactose intolerant they had soy milk available.

She chose one child to be her helper for the morning and hand out the snacks and milk. "How about you, Killian?"

"Yay!"

He jumped up and raced over to the table. "What do I do?"

Jasmine smiled. "You can take some of this milk and these straws and give one to each person on this side of the table," she instucted. "I'll come with the snacks and a napkin."

"Okay."

"I gotta have the other kinda milk Killian cause if I don't I get sick," Yasmina said.

As her helper did that, Jasmine followed, handing out the apples slices and little containers of peanut butter. "Now, everyone will be a helper since this job will have a different person doing it each day. As long as I see that you can be polite and show me that you're responsible." She pointed to a chart on the wall which had all their names written on it. "I will put a star next to your name when you've been my helper for the week. Once everyone has had a turn, we'll rotate again."

There were several students in the class who needed to drink soy milk and Killian made sure to ask each child before handing them their glasses and informed Jasmine which ones they were when he was finished.

"So the next helper 'members."

"Thank you, Killan. Now is anyone allergic to peanut butter? If so let me know now, so I can write it down," the teacher said. "In fact, if anyone knows any food that they can't have please tell me."

Annie raised her hand.

She would also send a note home with the children requesting the parents fill out a list of allergies. "Yes, Annie?"

"Ummm I can't have anything with wheat in it cause I get bumps on my arms an I can't breathe."

"Ahh, okay. I'll write it down," she said and did so. Celiac disease was becoming more prevalent in children nowadays.

"I gotta stay 'way from bees cause that's what happens when they sting me!" Willie cried fearfully.

"Do you have a small pen on you?" Jasmine asked, since most people who had insect allergies carried epinephren pens on them.

"Uh-huh!"

"Good. Thank you for telling me. I will make sure there are no bees around before letting you go outside for recess," Jasmine promised. There usually weren't, since the school avoided planting flowers by the childrens' playground for just that reason.

Killian cringed. The black goo aliens came from bee stings too as he learned in the X-Files movie.

They could feel the eyes of the children at the other tables on them, many of them smirking.

"Freaks..." Mary coughed.

Jasmine frowned. "Mary, that's unkind to say. A person with an allergy is not a freak, it's something they can't help having, like a person with blue eyes or red hair. They are born like that. And I won't have anyone calling anyone that name in my class."

"Yeah well that's just weird," added Alice.

Tommy and Belinda nodded their heads in agreement.

"My mommy says its okay to be different," Beth spoke up.

"It's no more weird than someone who prefers carrots over broccoli," Jasmine said. "And you're right, Beth. Everyone is different from everyone else. It's what makes you you. And that is how the gods made us."

Not another word was spoken from the "Jerk Gallery" as Killian called that table.

After everyone had eaten, Jasmine had them all take a turn in the bathroom to wash their hands, then come back to the table to do a small craft with some colored paper and string, making some pretty string art. That took up the rest of the morning till lunch at twelve.

"Now I can eat my sketti!" Killian cheered.

Jasmine had those children who had brought lunch that needed to be heated up raise their hand. She came and took their food one by one and heated it in the small micro wave on the counter. For those children who had opted to buy a lunch from the school, it was delivered by the lunch aides to the classroom with the child's name on it on trays.

"Can I try some sketti?" Willie asked.

Ashley helped deliver the lunches to the children, making sure each child had the appropriate plastic wear and could open up their containers and wrapped items.

Beth wanted to try the meatballs so Killian asked if Ashley could cut one up for him.

"Of course," she did so with a plastic knife, which no child was allowed to have.

Once all the children were settled, Jasmine told Ashley to take her lunch break. She would go later, while the children were at naptime.

Tommy glared over at Killian. "How come HE gets to eat sketti an I gotta eat this crap?" He picked up his Salisbury steak and threw it.

It landed right on Anne's salad with grilled chicken and cranberries.

"Ha ha ha!"

"Miss Jasmine, he's throwing food!" Anne cried angrily. "And now lookit my salad."

"Rabbit food!" Belinda teased.

Killian was tempted to give him a meatball in the face but he'd been looking forward to eating them all day and didn't want to waste them.

Jasmine went over and took the Salisbury steak off the salad and said, "Don't worry, Anne, I can fix this. Thomas, throwing food is unacceptable. For any reason. Now apologize to Anne or else you can be in time out." She made a mental note to write up a report as soon as she had time.

"She's a freak, why should I?" he huffed.

"Because what you did was wrong. If you didn't like your lunch all you had to do was tell me and I would have given you cheese crackers or peanut butter and jelly or chicken soup," Jasmine snapped. "But since you chose to disrupt my class with your rudeness now you may go and sit in time out for five minutes and face the wall!" She pointed to an innocuous blue plastic chair beside the corner near the counter.

He glared at her before he sat down and when she wasn't looking he raised his middle finger in defiance as he'd seen his brother do.

Jasmine washed the portions of Anne's salad that had gravy on it, then mixed it all again and brought it back to the little girl, saying, "Here you go."

"Thanks Miss Jasmine."

"You're welcome. "She gazed out at the class sternly. "Now, I expect all of you have been taught manners at home. And you should use them here. The next one who disrupts this lunch period will stay in during recess and do seatwork for me."

Killian didn't know what that was but it sounded boring.

Jasmine looked at her watch, timing her naughty student.

The other children behaved after seeing what happened when you didn't, and quietly ate their lunches, sharing with their friends if they wished.

She called Tommy from time out and then gave him one of the emergency lunches the school provided in case a child forgot theirs or didn't like what had been given to them.

He ate it without complaints and silently devised a plan to get even with the freaks at the next table.

Jasmine monitored the class closely after that, praising those who shared with others, hoping to show the rest of the children a good example with their classmates.

"Sorry you couldn't have some of my sketti an garlic bread Annie," Killian said sadly. "Maybe next time I'll bring something you can eat."

Anne smiled at him. "It's okay. I can eat pasta, long as it don't have wheat in it. Or bread. My Aunt Myra calls it gluten free."

"It taste different? Grandpa says some special foods do."

"No. It's just made with special flour without wheat in it," she answered.

"Cool. Grandpa hasta make some different stuff for Grandma now that she's gonna have a baby."

Belinda sniggered. "That kids gonna be ug-leeee an old just like him!"

Beth scowled. "You're mean and rude to say that! All babies are beautiful! My mom says so!"

"Yeah and making fun of a sorcerer is a good way to end up as a toad, Miss Smartypants!" Willy said.

"Not if they come from an evil guy like the Dark One...an the only reason why a pretty woman marries an ole ugly guy is for his money...that's what my mom says!"

"That's a lie!" Killian snapped. "My grandpa isn't the Dark One anymore, his curse was broken. And he's not ugly and my grandma married him cause they have true love and not for his money."

"Belinda that is enough. We do not insult other people this way. Now you can spend five minutes in the corner. Go on!"

Now in the corner, Belinda was plotting her own revenge.

"I say we find a way to get em outta here during recess," Alice whispered to Tommy and Mary.

"How we gonna do that?"

"Miss Boyd. My mom says she's dumber than a box a rocks and doesn't pay attention to nothing when she's talkin to her boyfriend on the phone...she's got the keys to the fence..."

"Cool. We lock em out and they'll get in trouble cause everyone'll think they ran off."

"Long as we throw the keys outside."

It was getting them to go outside the fence that was the problem.

After her five minutes was up Belinda rejoined her friends and the rest of their plan was hatched, ready to be put it into action during recess.

"All right children it's time for recess!" Ashley announced. The children screamed with delight and raced toward the door. "Hold it! I want you all to form a line and we go outside in an orderly fashion, understand?"

"Yes Miss Ashley," they chorused.

She would supervise the children while Jasmine took her lunch break.

The preschool had a large playground with amusements for every child including a swing set, rocking horses, sand boxes a small jungle gym, merry go round, a train and little cars. The cars and trains were only to sit in and didn't move. There was also a lifesize playhouse.

"I bet your clubhouse is better n this, " Beth said to Killian.

"Yup. We got a real fridge and beds."

"I really wanna see it now!" cried Yasmina.

"We can't leave we'd get in trouble," Willie reminded them.

"S'okay. I can invite you over one day," Killian said.

"Lookit this...the freak club!" Alice taunted, poking her head into the playhouse.

"Aww buzz off you buttholes!" Killian said angrily.

"Yeah go bug someone else!" added Beth.

"You gonna make us?" Belinda challenged.

"You leave us alone or we're gonna tell Miss Ashley and you're gonna havta sit in the corner!" Willie threatened.

"We're gonna tell, we're gonna tell!" Tommy mocked. "Whatta bunch a babies!"

Killian gave him a shove. "You're gonna be crying like baby when I kick ya in the nuts!"

"Bring it loser!"

"Killian we can't. We'll get in trouble. Let's just go tell Miss Ashley," Annie pleaded.

But Killian's blood was up and he wasn't about to kowtow to any bullies ever again. These were just mean nasty kids, like the Lost Boys and Felix. And he'd dealt with their kind before.

"So what's it gonna be loser? You gonna be a sissy or you gonna fight?"

The two boys stood face to face, their hands clenched into fists glaring daggers at each other.

Annie ran out the house to try to tell Ashley what was going on and was tackled to the ground by Alice.

"I'm gonna give you a fat lip to go with those freckles, weirdo!"

Anne yelped as Alice mashed her face into the dirt.

"Lemme go!" Annie cried, spitting out dirt.

"Make me, freckle juice!"

Beth ran up behind Alice and yanked on her hair.

"Owww!"

Annie rolled over and her small fist landed smack in Alice's eye. She had learned to fight from her foster brother Huck Finn.

"Woo hoo! Got her good!" Willie cheered.

"How ya like that, Miss Snot Nose?"

Belinda kicked him hard in the groin. He fell to the ground moaning in pain.

Beth saw and crept around and gave Belinda a wedgie. "Crack kills!"

Yasmina started laughing. "Hairy butt!"

Tommy raised his fist and was about to punch Killian in the face. The former pirate caught his wrist in his hand and put his behind his back as he'd seen his mother do many times when she arrested someone.

"You dick!"

"On the ground, you lowlife!"

"Bite me!"

He then employed a trick he learned from Bae and kicked the other boy's legs out from beneath him.

"I'm gonna knock you into next week you little loser!"

It was hard to do that when Killian obviously had the upper hand but Tommy wasn't about to give in yet.

He could see Ashley texting her boyfriend on her phone and nodded to his companions. The girls shoved Beth, Annie and Yasmina toward the fence.

Belinda crept behind the bench where Ashley was sitting and grabbed the keys, tucking them into the pocket of her jeans.

"Miss Ashley!" Beth yelled.

The young teacher's aide didn't hear her. She was talking to Thomas on the phone and asking him about Alexandra. The other children were also too engrossed in their play to realize anything was amiss.

Tommy seized his opportunity when Killian turned his head to see what Beth was screaming about and got up, punching the former pirate in the face.

He dragged the stunned boy over to the fence and shoved him outside while the girls pushed his friends out. Laughing wickedly, Mary locked the gate behind them.

"We're locked out!" gasped Beth.

"What do we do, Killian?" asked Anne nervously. "The gate's locked!"

"We gotta get Miss Ashley to make em give the keys back."

"Miss Ashley!" Annie yelled loudly to get the aide's attention.

"C'mon, let's go!" Mary and her cohorts raced toward the school entrance to get in line, the gate keys now in her pocket while outside the other children screamed frantically and pounded on the fence for Ashley. Finally the aide heard their cries and ran over to the fence's entrance.

"What are you doing out here?" She reached into her pocket for the keys. "What? I could've sworn I had them…"

"They stole them and locked us out!" Beth accused, pointing to where Alice, Mary, Tommy and Belinda were standing.

"You stay here. I mean that. Stay here!" Ashley walked over to where the other children stood and Looked at them. "My keys, please. Don't make me have to search your pockets to find them," she demanded coldly and held out her hand.

"We didn't do anything! They're a buncha liars!" Belinda protested.

"Oh, are they? You have been bullying them since school started this morning so that makes any claims you make that you're innocent a bit hard to believe, now isn't it. Turn out your pockets. All of you."

Mary groaned and pulled the keys out of her pocket. "Stupid babies!" she grumbled and dropped the keys into Ashley's hand. Jasmine came outside just as the rest of the children were getting ready to go inside.

"What's going on?" she asked Ashley.

"They locked Killian Gold and some of the other children outside the fence."

Jasmine eyed her suspiciously. "Oh? And how did they get the keys Ashley?"

The younger woman lowered her eyes in shame. "They must've gotten them while I was….talking to Thomas."

"Ashley! How many times have I told you that you can NOT take your eyes off the children for one minute?! What would have happened if one of them had gotten hurt….or kidnapped? This is your first and only warning: if you are careless like this again you can start looking for another job. Do I make myself clear?"

"I'm so sorry, Jasmine!"

"Never mind that now. Go let them in!"

Jasmine escorted the other children back into the school while Ashley unlocked the fence to let Killian and his friends in. While they were walking back to the school, Killian saw Sapphira come around the corner.

_What's she doin outta school? Prolly up to no good again like the last time when she stole Geppetto's parents. _

Part of him cautioned that he should just forget about her and go back to school but the Nevenger in him was suspicious and wanted to find out what she was up to before she tried to hurt someone else. He quickly slipped outside the gate before Ashley locked it and hid behind a trashcan. When he was certain everyone else was back in the school he emerged from his hiding place and kept a safe distance behind Sapphira to see where she was going.

_Looks like I've got some company,_ Sapphira thought wickedly.

The little pirate was going to be in for quite a surprise when he found out what she had in store for him. He was nothing but a pain in her neck….him and his friends. She was grateful she didn't live next door to him but she had two other brats to put up with…those outsiders the Carlyles. She headed for the woods. The little pirate was going to have a hard time trying to find his way out of there when she got done with him.

Killian wasn't afraid of being in the woods, they were less dangerous than the jungles of Neverland, dealing with Ogres in the Enchanted Forest or crazies like Cruella and Rasputin.

He didn't know how long he'd been walking or how far before he lost sight of her. Sighing with frustration he started trying to walk back home but to his dismay he kept walking back to the same places over and over again.

"Aww c'mon...I can't be lost!" he groaned.

It was also starting to get dark, he was hungry and trying to fight back the fear that slowly enveloped him. He was a Nevenger...he'd faced many scary things before and now was not the time to panic.

Then he heard the howling.

"H...Holy crap..." he whispered, knowing what that sound meant. Now was the time to panic.

He could hear something large crashing through the brush.

A large wolf stepped out, followed by several more, all of them growling.

Killian had watched Discovery Channel and knew that normal wolves would never attack a person unless they were sick or injured. But these were not normal wolves. These were dire wolves that had been brought over by the curse from Fairy Tale Land. And they were known to eat children.

_Grandpa...I really need you now..._ he thought fearfully.

Rumple was in his shop examining some afghans he had woven and preserved when he felt a sudden wave of fear crawl over him. He froze.

"Rumple? What is it? What's wrong?" Belle asked worriedly and rushed to his side.

What in the hell? he thought frantically. Then he held his pendant and concentrated. Because of his link with the other Nevengers when they were children on Neverland, he could feel when one of them was in trouble.

"Rumple is it Bae or the children?"

He looked at Belle. She could also sense when something was wrong. "It's not Bae or Aria, dearie. It's Killian."

"Oh God...what is it it?"

They were both startled when Rumple's cellphone started ringing.

"Hello. Mr Gold speaking," he answered automatically.

"Papa...it's Bae...we're at the school...Killian's missing!" his son cried frantically.

"Bae, how long ago did they notice this?" Rumple asked. He turned to Belle. "It's Bae. Killian's missing from preschool."

She gasped. "Oh no!"

"He...he's been gone an hour...they've searched the school and questioned some kids he was having a problem with but nothing! Nothing! Emma's calling everyone to get a search party going."

"Okay, calm down. We're coming over there. I . . .can feel him a bit through my bond, dearie." Gold reassured him.

"Thank God...maybe you can find him sooner."

Belle and Rumple got into the Cadillac and drove hell for leather down to the school.

At the school Bae and Emma were staring down the group of children who had been bullying his son and his new friends all day.

"We didn't do anything!" Mary protested.

"Don't lie to me, young lady!" Emma snapped, her truth telling power tingling like crazy.

"You had the keys to the fence," Jasmine reminded her.

In her dad's arms, Aria squirmed and glared at the girl with a Look reminiscent of her grandfather.

"Yeah but we didn't make him take off!" Alice argued.

"How do we know that?" Bae lectured. "You could have said something that upset him."

""Awww then he's just being a baby," Tommy scoffed.

Bae's eyes narrowed. "How would YOU feel if someone was teasing you and making you feel like you didn't belong?"

"Don't care," he said nonchalantly.

"Yeah you would!' yelled Beth.

"Of course you would," Bae agreed. "All of you would. It's why you decided to tease these other kids. Because by teasing them it made you feel like you weren't different. Like you were better and more normal than they are. But the truth is, you aren't any less scared or nervous. You just hide it by being bullies."

"We're not bullies. They're freaks!" Belinda spoke up.

Emma crossed her arms over her chest. "No one here is a freak. This isn't the circus."

"We gotta go find him," Annie insisted. "He could get kidnapped or something."

"We will, kid," Emma assured her, but she was terrified. Her little boy was missing and she was afraid as she had been afraid when he had been missing before with the other Nevengers.

Gold and Belle drove up to the school and got out. Rumple's hair was hanging in his eyes and his diamond and jet pendant was swinging slightly over his shirt and tie.

'We'll get to the bottom of this and find Killian," Belle assured him.

"Yes, dearie," he muttered. Then he limped up to the group and eyed them sternly.

The children ducked down in their seats, terrified of the former Dark One.

Rumple crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against Jasmine's desk. He fastened them with one of his patented Looks. "Okay. My grandson is missing and I want you to tell me exactly what happened here. Just the truth. No lies. Because if you lie, I will know and nobody lies to me, dearie. Understood?"

"Yes...sir..." they said hesitantly.

"Good." He pointed to Beth, whom he recognized since she looked like her pediatrician mother. "Miss McStuffins, can you tell me what happened today?"

"Ummm...they were picking on us all day and when we went outside for recess they started fighting with us an locked us outside."

"Who did?"

She pointed to Tommy, Alice, Mary and Belinda.

"I see." He Looked at them. "Well? Is that true? Were you tormenting my grandson and his friends?"

"So what?" Belinda asked, glaring at him.

"Shuddup Belinda or do ya wanna be turned into a snail an stepped on. That's what he does." Tommy smirked at Rumple.

"Not anymore, dearie. However, if you lie to me, your nose will grow long and pointed and everyone will know you for the liar you are. And if you keep bullying others, you'll become as ugly outside as you are on the inside. Is that what you want?"

"You're just talkin crap," the little girl insisted.

He could sense this child was vain about her appearance, as were many cosseted pretty girls her age.

"You're bluffin," she insisted.

Emma sighed. "Why do these kids always have to learn the hard way?"

"Because they're spoiled," Bae snorted.

Rumple snapped his fingers. A small mirror appeared on the desk in front of her. "Look into that and tell me what you see."

She picked it up and screamed in horror when she gazed into the glass and saw a monster out of a horror movie gazing back at her. Her face was covered in boils and warts, her skin grey and her nose an eagle's beak. "Ewwww! Ewww! Make it stop!" she wailed and threw the mirror down.

"See something that scares you, dearie?" he demanded. "If so then best you change your ways. Because only YOU can prevent what you saw in that mirror from coming true. That's a Mirror of True Appearance. And it only shows on the outside what you have become on the inside."

"T...That's gonna be me?"

He nodded. "It will. IF you continue to hurt others and be cruel to them. Treat others how you would be treated."

"O...Okay...Honest Mister Gold...we didn't make Killian run off. I swear."

"You might not have made him run off, but you did make him feel unwelcome and that is unacceptable behavior. Any child of mine who behaved that way would certainly regret it."

"You can say that again," muttered Bae to his wife.

She lowered her head. "M'sorry."

"Good. Now tell me if any of you saw him heading anywhere in particular."

They all shook their heads.

Bae sighed. It seemed they were at another dead end. Until Emma said, "Rumple, can't you cast a locator spell?"

"That will find him faster than a search party." Belle added.

"I can . . .but you must assist me. You need to learn how to cast this, apprentice," he replied. "Now, is there anything of Killian's you can use as a talisman?"

Emma glanced over at the coat rack and saw Killian's jacket hanging there. "We can use this!"

Rumple summoned it. "Okay. I want you to hold your hand over it and think about how much you need to find Killian. Focus your whole will on that and nothing else."

Please let this help me find him, Emma pleaded silently, pressing her hand to the little crocodile logo she ironed on the jacket herself, even casting a preservation spell on it so that it didn't wash off. It was his favorite jacket.

"You can do it, Em," whispered her husband. "A real mom always knows where her kid is and what he's up to."

The jacket began to glow with a faint blue light and floated out of her hands.

"Follow it, dearie," Rumple encouraged. "Like a lodestone or a scent hound, it will lead you to where you need to go."

The jacket floated out of the school yard and down the road toward the woods where they met up with Regina and the rest of the search party. "I can take this from here Regina," she said.

"All right," she said, seeing that Emma had the situation under wraps.

"I'd better come with you," Rumple said. "No telling if you might need backup. These woods aren't safe-especially as it grows dark."

"Are you sure you wouldn't want any of us to come along?" Archie inquired. He and Selene had joined the search party when Regina called them at the office.

Pongo glanced at the entrance to the woods, whimpering.

The little one's in danger Rumple...I smell wolves...like the ones back in the Forest.

Rumple hissed. "Hells!" He went and touched Emma. "Dearie, we need to move fast. There's no time to waste. Touch his jacket and show me what it reveals."

Emma pressed her hand to the jacket again, screaming in terror when she saw her child surrounded by a pack of wolves.

"Killian! Oh my God...Rumple...wolves. WOLVES! And they have him surrounded!"

Several horrified gasps were heard from the crowd.

"Let's go," he said, and then they were gone in the blink of an eye, teleporting to the place she had seen in her mind's eye.

"...Mom...Grandpa..." Killian whispered fearfully.

The wolves continued to advance.

"Emma, shield spell-NOW!" Rumple barked. "I'll deal with these rejects from an ogre's kennel!" He lit up his hands with fire and snarled. "Here, puppy puppy! Come and get it!"

_Oh look who's come to play, one of the wolves sent to him._

"How do you like to play with fire-you black devil?" Rumple growled, then blasted it with a precise fiery meteor.

_I'm going to rip you to pieces, sorcerer!_

"Better than you have tried and failed," he ground out, tossing a second fireball.

"Mom!" Killian cried as Emma threw her arms around him, focusing all of her energy on the spell shielding them from the pack.

It struck several of the pack and they yelped as their coats caught fire, turning tail and running away.

_You don't scare me easily sorcerer_, another growled and leaped at him.

"Granpa!" Killian cried in horror.

The huge monster landed right on top of Rumple, knocking him down, its huge teeth snapping at his throat.

_I am the Alpha here not YOU!_

"Like hell, dearie!" Gold spat and his amulet flared white hot, singing the wolf's muzzle. "Back off Black Fang. before I make a fur rug out of you!"

_I will feast on your innards sorcerer!_

"Really?" Rumple smirked. Then he grabbed the wolf's fur and hissed, "May your own evil wither you, hellspawn!"

The wolf snapped at him again. _I will make you watch while I feast on the woman and the young one before you die._

Then it screamed as the special spell Rumple had cast began to work upon it. It was a spell known only to the Master of All Magic and only able to be cast by him. It took the weight of all the evil a creature or person had done and made their body pay the price of it. The dire wolf found its body withering like a plant in the hot sun . .

_What are you doing to me? I am burning!_

"The weight of your evil deeds are exacting payment out of your hide. And the evil you do shall come back upon thee threefold!" the sorcerer growled.

Killian buried his face in Emma's side, not wanting to watch anymore.

The wolf shriveled up, finally becoming a puddle of brown goo upon the ground. Then it too withered up and was gone. Rumple regained his feet. "All right. Who's next?" he challenged.

The wolves sped off deeper into the woods, none of them wanting to risk their own deaths to issue a challenge to the new alpha.

Rumple dusted his hands off. "Kicked their ass! You won't have to worry about them causing havoc around here anymore. They'll stay away now."

Then he rubbed his leg, as it was bruised.

"Grandpa!" Killian cried and ran to his side after Emma released the shield on them.

Rumple hugged the little boy. "I'm okay, lad. Just a bit sore from that hairy beast sitting on me." But it was nothing a hot bath wouldn't cure.

"M'sorry I left the school but I saw the butthole wasn't in hers either an I thought she was up to something so I followed her..." He started to cry. "An you almost got eaten..."

Rumple sighed softly. "Killian Gold, how many time am I gonna have t'remind ye to not go looking for trouble?"

"Granpa...I really didn't wanna do it...but I was kinda worried the butthole was gonna do somethin bad an I tried to get back home so's you didn't worry but i got lost.."

"You got lost, dearie, because these woods aren't the safe place to play in like you think. These woods were part of the Infinite Forest at one time and a part of them still retains their magic. And what do you mean, you were chasing Sapphira?"

"She was skippin school an she came out here but I lost sight of her once I got in here..."

His grandfather shook his head in disapproval. "Lad, if Sapphira was doin' something you knew was wrong, you should have let her hoist herself by her own rope, not tried to see what she was up to. You scared all of us badly by doing what you did, and nearly got yourself eaten."

"And you coulda got eaten too!" he wailed. "And Mom!"

"That's right. All because you didn't think," he tapped the child's head. "With this before you came in here."

"M'I gonna get a spanking?"

Rumple eyed Emma. "That isn't up to me, dearie. That's up to your parents."

Then he added, "However, I'll remind you of what happened to me and Belle when we went off into the woods alone when I was trying to be brave. We got lost too and luckily it was Gwen who found us and not one of those dire wolves. "

"You gonna tie me to you like Dad did when you took off?" Killian inquired.

"I think we should do what we did for Rumple and Belle when they wandered off and…" Emma sighed. "Yes, Killian...I think your father will want to spank you. You nearly scared the life out of us!"

Killian looked down at his shoes. "I know...I was stupid, Mom..."

"Honey, you know we don't like having to spank you...but you have got to stop being so...reckless."

"I had this same conversation many times with your dad," Rumple informed him. "Many times."

"Guess I'm kinda like him, huh?"

"Oh yes . . ." agreed his grandfather. More than he knew Bae would ever like to admit.

"I'm gonna try to be better...I really am."

There was no sense of him trying to talk his way out of his punishments. He would accept them bravely.

"Can we go home now, Mom."

"Yes. We can."

Belle was waiting at the house with Bae when they returned.

She threw herself into her husband's arms the moment he stepped through the door. "Rumple? What happened?"

"What Emma saw was correct. He was surrounded by dire wolves . . .and I fought the Alpha for control of the pack while Emma shielded him from the rest of them. But as you can see, I won and the wolves will stay away now."

"Oh, thank God! Killian, honey, why were you in the woods? You know it's dangerous."

"Yes I'd like to know that too. Why were you there instead of in school like you were supposed to?" Bae asked once he had hugged his son.

"Ummm...I followed the butthole...was skipping school and I thought she was up to somethin..."

Bae put his head in his hands. Oh God! He sounds just like me! Now I know how Papa felt. "And it didn't occur to you to tell a teacher?"

"Ummm...didn't have time...she was getting away and then I got lost in the woods...then the wolves came..."

Bae felt his stress levels jump up into a red zone. "Great! Now I have my kid threatened by wolves and trying to stop another kid who probably was hell bent on getting you into trouble." He looked at Rumple. "Papa how in hell did you survive me growing up?"

"I counted to ten a lot . . .and I reminded myself that someday everything I said would finally click with you. I prayed for patience . . .and I figured one day you'd have kids just like you," he smirked. "And look-I was right!"

"Instead of the mother's curse, we have the father's curse...and it's not one you can break Bae," Belle quipped.

"Thanks, Papa," his son grumbled. He leveled a finger at his son. "You understand that you almost died by not using your head? And that your mom and I almost died when we found out you were missing?"

He felt this sense of deja vu as he spoke those words, only realizing that was because he had heard them so many times from Rumple.

"I know Dad and I'm sorry," Killian sniffled.

"Sorry's a beginning, not an ending," his father said, then almost swallowed his tongue at the words he had just said. Oh my God, it's true! You really DO become your parent when you have kids.

Behind him, Rumple was quietly muffling his laughter in his sleeve.

Belle kicked his foot "Stop it!"

Her husband pretended to look contrite but his eyes twinkled as he thought, _oh yes, what goes around comes around, son!_

"You're not helping," she hissed in his ear. "Gods...I hate it when you make me want to kiss you and slap you at the same time."

"I've already scolded the lad . . .it's out of my hands now, darling. Keep watching . . .because I'm sure that you're going to have moments like this also with our wee one."

"The mother's curse...we're doomed Rumple..."

A magical child with them as parents...

She could already feel her hair turning white.

"No, dearie. We just need to buy stock in hair dye . . .and happy pills." He giggled slightly. "Don't worry . . .with any luck our child will be the kind of kid who doesn't repeat the same mistake over again . . .he or she just finds new ways to drive us crazy. But with two of us we should do fine."

"Oh I hope so.' She patted her belly. "You are going to be as crazy as your brother and nephew here...and Mama and Papa will need to pay Doctor Hopper a visit once a day to keep us happy."

"And that should make Archie happy," remarked Rumple.

"Or make him lose his hair..."

"Dad...can we get my spanking over with...I know you don't wanna do it but you gotta so I remember..." Killian spoke up.

His parents looked at each other.

Bae sighed. He recalled hating to wait to get punished too as a child. He whispered to Emma, "You wanna flip a coin? Or do you recall whose turn it is?" They had determined after adopting Killian that they would take turns issuing punishments so one parent was not always viewed as the bad guy and back each other up so their child didn't think they could get away with murder when mommy watched them or vice versa.

"It's my turn." Emma said sadly.

"Okay . . .and you'll get a kiss from me afterwards," he murmured. He knew he was lucky that he had a partner to help dole out consequences, unlike Rumple, who'd been both parents.

"Come here, Killian," she said firmly.

"I think I hear the teakettle whistling," Belle excused herself to give them privacy.

"Yes, you're right," agreed her husband, and also withdrew, after clapping Bae on the back in encouragement.

Emma sat down on the sofa and pulled her son across her knees. "Please, please try to remember not to wander off next time and I really do not want to do this again!"

She counted them off as she gave him four firm swats, one for each year of his age and a final one for remembrance, her hand and his backside stinging as he sobbed on her lap.

Bae observed sadly again the feeling of deja vu creeping over him, for he had been in both positions before. And he'd hated both of them.

"Never forget that we love you Killian and we're doing this for your own good," Emma croaked

A remorseful child hugged her and repeated apologies.

She kissed him on the cheek. . "And now you get to choose whom you will be tied to."

"Dad," the child said, figuring it was only fair.

"Okay," Bae agreed, and after hugging both of them, produced a cord from his pocket and tied the ends around both their wrists.

"Next time don't run off anywhere," he lectured. "Now let's have some tea because I need something to de stress myself." He walked carefully into the kitchen, his son beside him, Killian rubbing his bottom ruefully.

Rumple stirred milk into his chipped cup as the two walked in, then said, "Have some tea, it always makes me feel better."

"Ummm...no shot in it?"

Four adults gave him a Look.

He giggled and threw his hand up in surrender.

"He's YOUR son all right, Gold," Emma snorted.

"I know . . .maybe I was too soft with him," Rumple mused. "Especially after the clothesline incident .. . ."

His son almost cringed. "No . . .Papa, you are NOT bringing that up . . ."

"WHAT incident?" Emma asked.

"It's between him and me," her husband said. "Ever."

She turned to look speculatively at her father-in-law. "Rumple, wanna make a deal?"

"No!" Bae cried. "Papa, you promised!"

Rumple held up a hand. "Afraid he's right, dearie."

Emma sighed. She was dying to know what had gone on. She knew so little about her husband's childhood in the Enchanted Forest.

Then she grinned. Perhaps one night they would have to play Truth or Dare again . . .and she would be sure to specify that the question had to be answered in detail.

Knowing her husband...there was plenty to of mishaps along with some lessons learned.

"If it was a WWF type of clothesline thing I won't be shocked."

"Not telling Em," Bae teased.

"Ah fine, be that way," she huffed.

"So are you gonna tell Melanie?" Killian inquired.

"I already did lad," Rumple answered.

He'd spoken to her while Killian was being punished and as always the former fairy she was raising showed not one ounce of remorse for her actions and yet another spot of darkness formed on the girl's heart.

The old sorcerer felt sorrow for Melanie, because he knew the elder fairy was trying her best to steer her ward away from the dark path, but it seemed that no matter how hard she struggled, the child seemed predisposed towards her own destruction. And in the end, the choice would ultimately be Sapphira's, and not anyone else's. For that was the great trap and the great lure of the darkness, it offered you whatever you desired-for a price. But the price was always greater than you had ever thought. And no one-not even former Fae of the Seelie Court, were exempt from that price.

_Those who do not learn from the mistakes and wisdom of their elders are doomed to repeat the same mistakes_, he thought sadly.

With worse consequences.

For the Seelie Court's first elders had predicted long ago one of their own would rise so high and fall so low, their undoing would come at the hands of the Master of All Magics in one final battle...and order would once again be restored, by another who had taken the same path.

But Blue had disregarded that prediction, as was her right as monarch . . .yet now it appeared what was predicted was slowly coming to pass . . .by her own hand no less.

There was no escaping a fate that you created.

And redemption was only possible through true remorse and sacrifice and a true wish to become better. There were no half measures. It was all or nothing. Mal knew that. So did he. And he walked the knife's edge still between light and dark, as the Balance between all.

But unlike Blue it was the love of his family that gave him the strength to stay on the correct path. He had little hope Blue would ever learn to open her heart to love…to family. To her being in complete control was enough.

Melanie was being forced to keep the girl isolated more for the safety of others.

"I'm gonna stay away from her from now on, " Killian said.

"A wise decision lad."

"Rumple, why don't you stay for dinner and Killian can tell all of us about the rest of his day at school?" Emma invited.

"That would be wonderful," Belle said excitedly.

"What're we having Mom?"

"Oh...something you love as much as spaghetti. Mac and cheese with hot dogs and I'm making it like Grandpa does."

"Yay!" He ran into the living room. "Hey Henry, Aria, you hear that? We're having Mac n cheese tonight an Grandpa and Gramma are staying for dinner!"

"That's cool Killian. C'mere! I want to play Mario Kart!" Henry challenged.

"M'gonna make ya eat my dust."

"Bring it!"

The adults started laughing. Emma picked up her daughter and cradled her to her chest. "Don't you start growing up too fast on me baby doll. Give me a little more time to enjoy this, will you?"

Aria just looked at her then she glanced into the living room where her brothers were playing Mario Kat. "Aww man! Dad, Grandpa...get in here and give me a hand will ya? He's beating me!" Henry complained.

The two elder Gold men grabbed their controllers and sat down on the sofa beside the two boys. "Now you can eat MY dust, dearies!' Rumple giggled.

"Why you always gotta be Bowser?" Killian asked his grandfather.

"Because I like him."

"Oh yeah, well Wario's gonna wipe the track with ya."

"Make way for Donkey Kong...losers!" Bae hooted.

"Ha ha...nobody's the king of the track like Mario Andretti Gold!' Henry bragged.

"You know Emma, sometimes men just can't help being little boys again," Belle said with a smirk as they watched three generations of Gold boys at play. It appeared that they grew up too fast but once in a while the little boys within them would come out to play, just for a little while. The women took out their cameras and preserved the scene, another addition to the growing album of adventures and mishaps the family was now becoming famous for.


End file.
